The increased demand and limited supply of petroleum-based chemical feedstocks have spurred a large research push in the area of renewably-sourced polymers. Bio-based feedstocks such as carbohydrates may offer great promise for materials development due to their rich functionality (high heteroatom content and stereochemistry) and renewable production on an impressive scale (˜1014 kg/yr). Sugars currently comprise a large sector of the chemical industry, with annual production on the order of ˜1011 kg. Some sugar derivatives are already being touted as viable substitutes for petroleum-based chemicals in polymer applications. For example, isosorbide has been extensively studied in the realm of polymer chemistry and is currently marketed as an alternative to bisphenol A (BPA). Thus, sugars and derivatives thereof are a rich resource for the development of new bio-sourced polymers.
Excellent examples of the unique functionality provided by sugar derivatives are the dilactones glucarodilactone (GDL) and mannarodilactone (MDL). The structure of GDL and MDL are given by formula (I) below.
